Example2 AL 7 arpeggios of the A melodic minor scale

Example 2 presents all seven arpeggios of the A Melodic Minor scale played within the shape 1 form as an ascending and descending one-octave sequence. Starting from the 7th degree, the sequence starts from the VIm

m7b5

G# arpeggio. For the demonstration I used sweeping in conjunction with hammer-ons and pull-offs for a smooth legato sound. Start off slowly and concentrate on pushing the pick through the strings in a single motion when sweeping. The movement should feel similar to the action of dragging a stick through park railings, and with the pick coming to rest on the next string slightly in advance of pushing though to sound the note. When hammering-on, hit down hard and from a height at first to ensure strength and accuracy and pull off gently in an outwards and downwards direction. The overall effect should be smooth and even, with all notes played at the same velocity. To begin with, I would advise treating each bar as a separate exercise and repeating until memorised before linking together to form the whole sequence. Use the recommended fingerings and tap your foot on each beat. These kinds of diatonic sequences can be applied over any one of the seven possible tonal centres in the Melodic Minor scale, so once you’re comfortable playing through the example, break it up into one and two-bar phrases and apply as 16th-notes over a G#7#5 chord for a G Superlocrian sound, or a D7 vamp for a Lydian Dominant sound. In whatever tonal centre you’re improvising, the key will be to start and resolve your phrases on one of the stronger chord tones relative to the ‘home’ chord over which you are soloing.